Monday, April 8, 2013

Back when I was in
university, I decided to become a vegetarian. This will likely come as a shock
to anyone who has been reading my previous posts and has observed my love of meat. I
was a vegetarian for about 5 years and really enjoyed it; I was certain I’d
never go back to eating meat. After I moved to Toronto and was between jobs, I did some waitressing at Magic Oven, a restaurant offering organic pizza, pasta and salad options. Also, wings. Yes, tasty, delicious
free-range, crispy and dry rubbed in herbs and garlic. After about a month
at this place, I started dreaming about wings and eventually ate one. It was
amazing and they are still to this day my all-time fave wings. This post,
therefore, has a special place in my meat
gut heart.

The wings:

Anchor Bar, Jackson Square,
Hamilton ON

Working in the James
North neighbourhood means that I have many delicious options for
lunch. With so many new and interesting places popping up, it can be hard to keep up let alone
choose a place to check out! Last week my co-workers and I decided to visit the Anchor Bar; Jackson Square’s newest addition and the wing joint’s first
venture in Canada. With a fully renovated space, friendly staff and
super tasty wings, it has quickly become a popular lunch spot among locals and it’s easy to see why.

Anchor Bar, Jackson Square,
Hamilton ON

We ordered 30 wings –
½ spicy and ½ medium. What can I say? They were very tasty and nothing short of what I would expect from a place known for their wings. The sauce had great flavor – tangy, spicy and bright.
The wings weren’t overly battered, just nice good-sized wings coated in a messy
sauce. They came with a house-made blue cheese dip which we all loved. I don’t even really like celery but had several pieces just to soak up the dip!

Buffalo Chicken Poutine

We also ordered a
poutine (Obviously. I mean, how can I go somewhere new and not try one of their
poutines when they have 4 different kinds on the menu?) We opted for the “Buffalo Chicken” poutine. Although the potatoes are nice and the curds
are appreciated, the gravy was overly salty. They didn’t use their signature
wing sauce on the chicken, opting instead to let the flavor of the gravy coat
the meat. The dish was finished with a ranch drizzle. While we still enjoyed the
poutine, I think a few small changes could really make this poutine a show
stealer. I would start by coating the chicken in their tasty wing sauce (which,
really only makes sense when you consider the poutine is called the
“Buffalo Chicken” poutine) and I would substitute the ranch drizzle with their
homemade blue cheese sauce. By incorporating two things they are already doing really
well, namely their sauce and their blue cheese dip, they would have a delicious
and unique poutine.

Overall, the Anchor Bar is a great new
spot inside Jackson Square that I would definitely recommend to anyone with a
craving for chicken wings. We left feeling satisfied - not super full or bloated - and anxious to return!

Blog epilogue:

We have all been
craving wings in the office since we went. Even for breakfast!

About Me

Having worked in a local bakery throughout high school and watched the cooking channel obsessively from an early age, I can say whole-heartedly that I am a food lover. I love all things fried, flambéed, grilled, baked and dipped. I am constantly trying to keep track of all the restaurants, markets, cafes and vineyards that I have explored and will endeavour to share each and every bite with you.